Sealing Jutsu Sensei

Secret Technique

Just as Asuma started to doubt whether he was actually born to his parents, Obito, following closely behind, bent down to check on Ebisu.

Seeing that Ebisu was breathing steadily, even lightly snoring, Obito chuckled:

"It seems like Ebisu is fine; he probably just passed out from overusing his chakra."

Hearing this, Asuma sighed in relief but was also moved to the point of tears.

Who would have thought that the ordinarily timid Ebisu would unleash such potential to save this little girl, even pushing his body to such an extreme?

What touched Asuma the most was that even after exhausting all his chakra, Ebisu was still standing, as if ready to continue fighting alongside them…

This guy…

Unable to contain himself, Asuma knelt beside the collapsed Ebisu, patted his shoulder, and said:

"Ebisu, my friend, you are the true hero…"

However, what Asuma didn't know was that it wasn't actually Ebisu who had been pulling off all those moves just now…

Not far away, up in the treetops, Natsuhiko looked at the screen, which showed a "connection lost" message. He couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth.

"Who would have thought Ebisu would run out of power so fast… no, I mean chakra. I was planning to show off a bit more and make him look even cooler…"

Indeed, the moves Ebisu had performed earlier were actually controlled remotely by Natsuhiko.

This was a new technique Natsuhiko had developed, inspired by the Shadow Puppet Technique and the motion-capture feature of tight suits, which was built into the students' battle suits as a hidden function.

He just didn't expect to have to use it so soon.

However, Natsuhiko still seemed unsatisfied with this function.

"Looks like I need to add a chakra meter to this technique so it doesn't run out of power halfway."

Natsuhiko murmured to himself, recalling his fear of running out of battery on his phone in his previous life.

"But now that I think about it, I haven't named this technique yet…"

"Well, since it's based on the Shadow Puppet Technique, controlling the students' bodies via the receiver in their suits, the name 'Human Puppet Technique' would fit perfectly."

"—Too bad someone already trademarked that name."

"So what should it be called?"

Natsuhiko stroked his chin, deep in thought.

"How about… Giant Figurine Technique?"

But before Natsuhiko could decide, Orochimaru interrupted his thoughts with a comment.

"Hehehe…"

"I didn't expect, Natsuhiko-kun, that aside from Sealing Techniques, you're also skilled at teaching students."

Orochimaru praised, "Though they relied on equipment, that child was able to make the right decision in such a critical situation. His adaptability is truly commendable."

"Lord Orochimaru, you flatter me."

Natsuhiko humbly replied, "Ebisu still has a long way to go."

Indeed, he did. After all, according to the sensors, Ebisu had been sound asleep the entire time…

However, unaware of the truth, Orochimaru kept muttering Ebisu's name, clearly having taken quite an interest in him.

Ebisu, it looks like you're on your own now.

Natsuhiko thought to himself.

At that moment, the giant snake's vision was still obscured by the tattered cloth tangled around its fangs. It was wildly thrashing its head, trying to shake it off.

Seizing this opportunity, Obito slung Ebisu's arm over his shoulder and turned to Asuma:

"Asuma, let's run!"

Even someone as reckless and headstrong as Obito knew that with just the two of them, they couldn't defeat the giant snake.

Especially since they still had to look after both Anko and Ebisu.

However, Asuma seemed to have a different plan.

After a moment of silence, as if making a decision, Asuma suddenly drew his blade and turned to face the giant snake in the distance:

"Obito, you take them and go first. I'll buy you some time."

"Asuma, you idiot, what are you talking about!"

Obito said anxiously, "This is no time for you to play hero!"

Asuma replied, "I'm not doing this to show off."

"Obito, you can see it too—there's no way we can outrun this monster with those two in tow before it catches up to us."

"So if we don't want everyone to die here, someone has to stay behind and delay it."

Obito opened his mouth to respond but found no words to refute him.

Meanwhile, Anko, who thought they had escaped danger, looked at the two of them and felt a surge of regret.

If it weren't for her, they wouldn't have been dragged into such peril.

At this point, Obito gritted his teeth and said:

"If that's the case, then I'll stay—"

"Haha…"

Asuma suddenly burst into laughter.

"There's no way I'd let you, of all people, handle such an important task, Obito!"

"Besides, you already said it yourself—this is a perfect opportunity to show off. How could I let you steal the spotlight?"

With that, Asuma, wielding his blade, began charging toward the giant snake.

"Don't forget, I'm the captain of the Shuriken Squad!"

Damn it, Asuma…

Obito knew now wasn't the time to waste any more words, so he took one last deep look at Asuma's back, hoisted Ebisu onto his shoulder, and called for Anko to leave.

Hang in there, Asuma. I'll be back with help as soon as I can!

Obito thought, gritting his teeth.

But just then, a sudden whizzing sound cut through the air.

Two red shurikens appeared out of nowhere, embedding themselves in the ground right in front of Obito and Asuma.

What the…?

The two stopped in their tracks, picking up the shurikens in front of them.

Clearly, these shurikens bore a strong resemblance to the runic ones they used, except for the two golden characters engraved on them: Secret Technique!

Could it be?

"Teacher Natsuhiko? Are you here?" Obito called out, scanning his surroundings.

But no response came.

The two exchanged a glance, knowing they didn't have time to ponder further as the giant snake was regaining its sight.

With a heavy nod to each other, they knew they had no choice but to bet everything on these two shurikens.

After securing Ebisu and Anko behind a large tree, Obito quickly rejoined Asuma, approaching the giant snake.

The snake had just flung off the cloth blocking its vision and was regaining its sight.

As it scanned the area and saw that Obito and Asuma hadn't fled, its blood-red eyes showed a human-like expression of surprise.

"You didn't run when you had the chance?"

"What gave you such courage?"

(End of chapter)

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